Author’s Note: “Proposal” is an aspirational poem that came to me as I was considering, one December, what I wanted from my life, what would make me feel whole as a person. The ‘proposals,’ as I call them, came to me as exclamations that range from large to small in scope, though none are small enough so as to be immaterial. Here, at least in this poem, they exist as possibilities—if not in this life, in the next one.
Proposal
let’s get sober! let’s ignore our genetic
dispositions & recall every Christmas Eve
down to the pattern of the wrapping papers!
let’s set aside an hour & call some
therapists! let’s eat ripe peaches & lick the
juice from our wrists! why don’t we try to
believe in god one last time! we should
look at all of our days with astonishment!
why don’t we hold each other like the end
is coming! let’s kiss very tenderly
as the city burns! we should
say thank you more! let’s river ourselves
into the sky when it’s time! our stubborn souls
would stick close for so long! find me
as soon as you remember!
we should do this all again!
♦
Emily Adams-Aucoin’s poetry has been published in several anthologies, as well as in Electric Literature’s The Commuter, storySouth, Split Rock Review, Meridian, and Colorado Review, among other publications. When she’s not writing, Emily enjoys baking, gardening, and looking for poems that hide in the wooded area behind her home in south Louisiana. Website: www.emilyadamsaucoin.com
Delmarva Review is a national literary journal with local roots in the Delmarva Peninsula. Editors cull through thousands of submissions annually to select the most compelling new poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. About half are from the Chesapeake and Delmarva region. The review is available in paperback and digital editions from online booksellers and regional specialty bookstores. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, support comes from tax-deductible contributions and a grant from Talbot Arts with funds from the Maryland State Arts Council. Website: www.DelmarvaReview.org
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